Within the last few years, graphene has received special attention from the scientific world due to its unique mechanical, and electrical properties.1-3 The widespread application of graphene is not just limited to the fields of sensors,4-5 nanoelectronics,6 composites,7-8 hydrogen storage,9 lithium-ion batteries,10 but also shown promises in medicine as antibacterial materials.11 The diversity of the technological applications of graphene materials drives the search for facile routes to produce graphenes in high yields. Recent research for synthesis of such materials involved either chemical or electrochemical reduction of exfoliated graphite oxide.12,13 Most of these techniques require use of strong oxidizing agents, for example, H2SO4/KMnO4. A recent report described the production of graphene via reduction of CO using Al2S3.14 Nonetheless, a well-controlled large scale production protocol for graphene structures is still in a great demand.
Another disadvantage of syntheses of graphene is that the product produced is of low crystallinity. Most syntheses of graphene begin with graphite, then exfoliate the graphite by oxidation to graphite oxide, followed by reduction.24 These “top-down” processes introduce extensive defects into each layer of graphene. A “bottom-up” synthesis of few-layer graphene also produced graphene showing poor crystallinity, as indicated by broad lines in the X-ray diffraction pattern.25 